Crystal Palace manager Ian Holloway is hoping his prior experience of the Barclays Premier League can help him in his quest to keep Crystal Palace in the top flight.

The 50-year-old guided the Eagles back in to the Premier League through the play-offs last season and is now preparing his squad for the challenge of hosting Tottenham in their season curtain-raiser on Sunday.

Holloway tasted a solitary season in the Premier League with Blackpool but, although he and his players earned plaudits for the way they played, the Seasiders ultimately slipped back into the second tier.

Now Holloway is ready to use those experiences and lessons of taking on the biggest and best teams in the country to ensure Palace can survive for more than just one campaign.

"I think every year of your life you should learn and think about what you have learnt over and over again to improve yourself," he said

"You have got to deal with disappointments and upsets and then bounce back and get there and we had a great run at it.

"We [Blackpool]were predicted we would be the worst team ever - we wouldn't even get 10 points, that is not nice."

Holloway has already added nine players to his ranks at Selhurst Park following the 1-0 play-off final success against Watford, a result he felt was masterminded because of those trying times with Blackpool.

"I've learnt an awful lot and I felt that helped me in the play-off situation," he added.

"I have got a different group of players at a different club but hopefully my experience in this can help everyone around me."

Known for employing an attacking philosophy for the majority of his time at Bloomfield Road regardless of the opposition, Holloway has conceded he may have to play a little more defensively this time around.

"Hopefully we can stop the opposition doing whatthey are doing," he said. "We can break it up and then go and score ourselves and get three points instead of none and get to 40 points so we can do it again [next season].

"What I've got to do is stay calm, keep my feet on the ground, keep working and keep being realistic.

"I need to give them tactics that I have picked up along the way that might stop some of these teams who have got technically better players."

Holloway is likely to hand a number of competitive debuts to summer signings but he will be without injured club captain Paddy McCarthy, midfielder Yannick Bolasie and new recruit Jerome Thomas as he looks for a good start at home to Andre Villas-Boas' Spurs.